Yankees' Carlos Rodón delivers injury update on himself

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – OCTOBER 01: Carlos Rodón #55 of the New York Yankees reacts after ending the fifth inning against the Boston Red Sox in game two of the American League Wild Card Series at Yankee Stadium on October 01, 2025 in the Bronx borough of New York City. (Photo by Ishika Samant/Getty Images)

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By Jackson Roberts

Contributing Sports Writer

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The New York Yankees' rotation could be the best in the majors by the end of the season, but only if all of the stars get healthy and perform at their peak.

Carlos Rodón, the Yankees' excellent No. 2 starter and All-Star this past season, underwent elbow surgery after New York was eliminated from the playoffs, and is expected to miss at least the first month of the regular season. He's one of two former All-Stars hoping to return in short order, as ace Gerrit Cole is still recovering from Tommy John surgery last March.

Rodón's consistency last season was a huge key to the Yankees winning 94 games. Whenever he comes back, the Yankees need him to keep eating innings and piling up strikeouts. At this point, any positive update on his recovery qualifies as big news in the Bronx.

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NEW YORK, NEW YORK - OCTOBER 01: Carlos Rodón #55 of the New York Yankees reacts after ending the fifth inning against the Boston Red Sox in game two of the American League Wild Card Series at Yankee Stadium on October 01, 2025 in the Bronx borough of New York City. (Photo by Ishika Samant/Getty Images)

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Fortunately for Yankees fans, then, Rodón provided such an update on himself at the Baseball Writers' Association of America awards gala on Saturday.

"I’m great,” Rodón said during an appearance on "Foul Territory." "I’ll be back (Sunday) to Florida to keep throwing. So been throwing a lot lately. Just trying to, I guess, lube up this elbow joint and get it going for the season. So it took a lot of bones out, but it’s better now. And now it’s just building up."

So what has Rodón been noticing since the surgery? Quite a significant difference, as it turns out.

“A lot more extension,” the lefty said. “I couldn’t really bend my elbow that very much. I couldn’t button my shirt before, so that was interesting. But now I can do that and touch my head.”

Rodón went 18-9 with a 3.09 ERA in 195 1/3 innings for the Yankees during the regular season. He led the team with 203 strikeouts, and for the first time in a Yankees uniform, he received Cy Young votes, finishing sixth in the voting behind winner Tarik Skubal of the Detroit Tigers.